Ezequiel Moreno

Saint Ezequiel Moreno y Díaz was born on April 9, 1848, in Alfaro, La Rioja, Spain, into a humble family where his father worked as a tailor. As a boy he served at the altar and grew in love for Our Lady of the Rosary, a devotion that would mark his whole life. Entering the Order of Augustinian Recollects in 1864, he took the name Fray Ezequiel Moreno de la Virgen del Rosario and soon offered himself for the missions. Sent to the Philippines, he was ordained a priest in Manila on June 3, 1871, and poured himself out in pastoral service—learning local languages, caring for the poor, and tending the sick through epidemics, drought, and fire. After years of fruitful ministry and leadership within his order, he crossed the Atlantic again to serve the Church in Colombia, becoming Vicar Apostolic of Casanare and later Bishop of Pasto, known for generous charity and for encouraging prayer, especially the Rosary. Canonized in 1992, he is especially invoked as patron of cancer patients. His feast day is August 19.